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Fire in Huge Bangladeshi Mall Kills 1, Injures 20

Thousands flee blaze as 20 hospitalized

By Matt Cantor,  Newser Staff

Posted Mar 13, 2009 9:03 AM CDT

(Newser) – A fire swept through Bangladesh's largest shopping mall today, killing a security guard, the AP reports. Some 10,000 shoppers poured outside the building and 20 were hospitalized, CNN notes. The blaze broke out on the 18th floor of the capital's 22-story Bashundhara City mall; flames spread to other floors despite efforts by firefighters in 15 fire trucks, an official said.

Rescuers are searching the mall for anyone left behind; police don’t know how many may remain. "There is no scope of getting information from the inside so far," said a police commissioner. The mall is said to be the biggest in South Asia and the 12th largest worldwide, receiving some 25,000 shoppers daily.

Media people take images of the burning Bashundhara City mall in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Friday, March 13, 2009.
Media people take images of the burning Bashundhara City mall in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Friday, March 13, 2009.   (AP Photo/Pavel Rahman)
Flames rise out of the burning Bashundhara City mall in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Friday, March 13, 2009.
Flames rise out of the burning Bashundhara City mall in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Friday, March 13, 2009.   (AP Photo/Pavel Rahman)
Bangladesh firefighters spray water to douse flames on the Bashundhara City mall in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Friday March 13, 2009.
Bangladesh firefighters spray water to douse flames on the Bashundhara City mall in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Friday March 13, 2009.   (AP Photo/Pavel Rahman)
An Air Force helicopter rescues a trapped security officer from the burning Bashundhara City mall in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Friday, March 13, 2009.
An Air Force helicopter rescues a trapped security officer from the burning Bashundhara City mall in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Friday, March 13, 2009.   (AP Photo/Pavel Rahman)
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